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Gulf Coast Blasts Off

The Gulf Coast Economy: Ready 4 Takeoff Coalition on October 26 hosted its second in a series of regional town hall meetings in Plaquemines Parish... Local civic, community, and business leaders attended the event, which gave residents an opportunity to voice their opinion and share their thoughts on how the state can work with regional partners to strengthen non-traditional, private and public sector job opportunities in the Gulf.

“The people of Louisiana are hurting. Jobs are in jeopardy and our economic future is uncertain,” said Bobby Thomas, moderator at the town hall and Director of Plaquemines Association of Business and Industry.. “Today, Ready 4 Takeoff brought together like-minded people and provided our Parish with an open forum to share our stories and seek pro-active solutions that will create jobs and grow our economy. By partnering across four states to advocate for economic development initiatives, we can and we will turn the economy around for innumerable families, workers, suppliers, manufacturers, and small businesses in the Gulf Coast and continue to provide valuable resources to Americans.”

The Gulf Coast Economy: Ready 4 Takeoff Coalition, has emerged as a leading advocate for the advancement of pro-growth initiatives that will expand local economies and help create and retain good paying jobs throughout the Gulf Coast. Participants at today’s meeting included, Louisiana’s seafood associations, Plaquemines Parish Department of Economic Development and Tourism, Plaquemines Association of Business and Industry, among others. The town hall focused on a variety of regional economic development projects that ranged from: bolstering the sales of Gulf seafood, to expediting the revenue sharing from offshore oil and gas development, to strengthening non-traditional job sectors in the Gulf with the construction of the KC-45 Tanker in Mobile.

“With so many industries impacted by the BP oil spill, it will take the efforts of many of the American businesses and employers across the Gulf Coast be it seafood, tourism, or non-traditional sectors like aerospace and ship builders to come together to make it through this crisis,” said Ewell Smith, Executive Director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board. “I commend the Ready 4 Takeoff Coalition for its unwavering commitment to reinvigorating the Gulf. Together we can build a brighter future for Gulf Coast families, workers, and entrepreneurs.”

The Plaquemines Parish town hall meeting is part of a series of Coalition regional town halls that are designed to highlight vital economic development projects. Additional town halls will occur in the Gulf Coast Economy: Ready 4 Takeoff membership states, which include Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida. To learn more visit: www.ready4takeoff.org.

Louisiana Women

The Louisiana Center for Women and Government, headquartered at Nicholls State University, invites the public to “Dance with the Stars of the South” on Friday, Nov. 12, at Astor Crowne Plaza, 739 Canal Street in New Orleans. Headlining the celebrity guest list is Sammy Kershaw, country music star and politician.

The event is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. with cocktails and a silent auction, followed by dinner, a live auction and several star-studded performances at 8 p.m. Eric Paulsen, anchor of WWL-TV Eyewitness Morning News, will serve as master of ceremonies.

Dancers include Andrea Apuzzo, chef and proprietor of Andrea's Restaurant in Metairie, La.; Michael Lewis, New Orleans Saints Ambassador; Jane Miller, M.D., president of the Jefferson Performing Arts Society Leading Ladies Guild and co-chair of the New Orleans Opera Guild Ball; Nell Nolan, society columnist for The Times-Picayune; and Eugene Priestley, an executive with Chevron Exploration & Production Inc.

This year’s live auction will be conducted in memory of former Center auctioneer Sen. Ken Hollis, of Louisiana’s 9th District. Auctioneers include The Hon. Scott Angelle, Lt. Governor of Louisiana; The Hon.

Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson, vice president of the New Orleans City Council; The Hon. Daniel “Danny” Martiny, state senator from Louisiana’s 10th District; and Henry Shane Jr., founding partner of Favrot & Shane Companies.

Gala tickets are $75 per person and include complimentary wine served with dinner. Cocktail attire is required. For reservations, call (504)

293-2619 or send an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Established in 1991 and directed by Dr. Laura Badeaux of Nicholls, the Center encourages and promotes the leadership of women by providing resources and non-partisan support through educational workshops, training seminars and outreach programs. With more than 600 members from eight regions across Louisiana, the Center promotes women in government and public service, acknowledges achievements of women and teaches all citizens about the importance of public service and responsible citizenship.

In its 25 years of operation, the Convention Center, there have been a total of 2,003 major conventions and trade shows in the Convention Center. These conventions have attracted 12,258,489 attendees to the New Orleans area and generated an economic impact of $48.1 billion.

In 2009, 101 events were held at the Convention Center, drawing 499,567 attendees.

The total economic impact of the Convention Center in 2009 was $1,685.68 million or $1.69 billion.

This is made up of direct spending of $895.84 million and secondary spending of $789.84 million.

The direct and secondary spending that is attributable to the Convention Center produced $138.91 million in tax revenue for the State of Louisiana.

$80.70 million of this revenue was collected by the State of Louisiana and $58.21 million was collected by local government bodies, specifically the City of New Orleans, the Orleans Parish School Board and the Regional Transit Authority.

In addition, 23,989 jobs in the local economy are supported by the activities of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, creating $499.89 million in income for local area residents

Lafayette Chamber And LABI

Louisiana Association of Business and Industry President, Dan Juneau, will breakdown the results of the November 2 mid-term elections and provide a perspective of the implications. Joining Juneau will be LABI Director of Taxation and Finance, John LeBlanc. LeBlanc has been analyzing the 2011 tax burden on Louisiana businesses. He share his insights on what to expect and how to prepare.

The Eggs' N' Issues breakfast series is designed to provide timely information on key issues as a value-added benefit of chamber membership. This final breakfast program for 2010 is sponsored by Wright Moore Dehart Dupuis & Hutchinson.

Contact Information Coordinator, Courtney Thomas, by phone at 337-233-2705 or by email, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.for registration inquiries.

BGR: What 'Rolling Forward' Means for Tax Rates

Today BGR releases Rolling Forward: The Complete Picture. The report provides a composite picture of citywide property tax rates in Orleans Parish, the capacity of various taxing entities to increase those rates, and the potential cost to property owners.

Landrieu and The Netherlands

United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., from November 9 to 12, 2010, will lead a third Congressional Delegation (CODEL) to the Netherlands to study the Dutch integrated water management system. Louisiana and administration officials will join Sen. Landrieu to study the world-class water management and flood protection system in the Netherlands. The area shares many of Louisiana’s challenges in coastal restoration and protecting populations and economic infrastructure below sea level. This year’s trip will also contain an oil spill response component.

Following their historic flood in 1953, Dutch officials and engineers developed a comprehensive flood control system to protect the country, and emerged as international leaders in the field of integrated water management. Following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Netherlands was one of the first nations to extend support to Louisiana and other affected Gulf Coast communities.

This year’s visit to the Netherlands will build on a series of previous trips, meetings and workshops with a particular focus on flood control and protecting communities in a delta; designing and using urban space to better live with the water; and developing a new science-based governance model for implementing water management plans for South Louisiana.

New Orleans Jazz and Heritage

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation is presenting a weekend of world-music and jazz events in being called the New World Rhythms Festival. More info

A week after the 2010 midterm elections, the Bipartisan Policy Center is heading to New Orleans for its annual Political Summit, Beyond the Ballot: Making Washington Work. The day-long policy conference will feature prominent Republican and Democratic political strategists discussing whether the new Congress and the President can effectively work together to tackle the problems facing the nation. http://bipartisanpolicy.org/nola2010